Americast

Sarah is on holiday so the BBC's US Special Correspondent Katty Kay steps into her breach on Americast, equipped with stories of Dr Anthony Fauci saving a guest at the prestigious Gridiron dinner. The team speak to Marianne Williamson, who found fame as Oprah Winfrey's 'spiritual advisor', and who now wants to usurp Joe Biden to become the Democratic nominee for President, despite newly-emerged al...

Twitter insiders have told the BBC that the company is now much less able to protect users from trolling, state-co-ordinated disinformation and child sexual exploitation. Marianna takes the rest of the Americast team though her BBC Panorama investigation into how one of the world’s most influential social media platforms is being transformed by Elon Musk. And she describes how the Twitter CEO has...

America's conservative cable TV channel is being sued for airing false 2020 election fraud claims. And court documents suggest that Fox News anchors reported allegations that the vote was “stolen” from Donald Trump even though they knew they were false. The Washington Post’s media critic Erik Wemple joins the team to talk through what's been happening in the case and a bombshell deposition from Fo...

A busy week for President Biden! On the first anniversary of the Russian invasion, he made a surprise trip to Kyiv to meet President Zelensky, pledging to support Ukraine for "as long as it takes". Biden then gave a speech in Poland to reaffirm America's commitment to Nato. Sarah was on the trip and shares her impressions, and the Americast team also talk to Assistant US Secretary of State Karen D...

As a growing number of flying objects are shot down in US airspace, the Biden administration is still trying to explain just what’s going on...and even fielding the odd question about aliens. Why are Americans so obsessed with extra-terrestrials? Meanwhile, on ground level, many are asking why national media took so long to start covering a major train derailment in Ohio that released hazardous ch...

What clues were there in President Joe Biden’s State of the Union speech that suggest he's considering a run for a second presidential term? The Americast team take a look at what was in it and how his performance has gone down. The US president is already back on the road, but not all Democrats are keen for him to run again. The activist Norman Solomon explains why some on the left of the party w...

After shocking video footage was released of the 29-year-old African-American being beaten to death by five black police officers in Memphis, we ask what might stop police brutality in the US. Sarah and her BBC colleague Chelsea Bailey share insights from their reporting trips to Memphis. And we also ask retired African-American LAPD Sergeant Cheryl Dorsey what should be done differently. With Don...

Lies, lies and more lies. We chat to Republican and newspaper publisher Grant Lally who's known George Santos for years. Why were the concerns he raised about the freshman congressman ignored? And what's behind America’s long-term weight issues? Public health policy advocate, Rhea Farberman, talks obesity. Americast is presented by North America editor Sarah Smith, Today host Justin Webb, the BBC'...

As America approaches 50 years since the Supreme Court made abortion access a constitutional right, the Americast team investigates how the country has changed since that ruling was overturned last June. As many states make abortion illegal, other “sanctuary states” are encouraging women to cross state-lines for abortions. Dr Anne Udall, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood in Oregon, tells us...

A special counsel has been appointed to investigate President Joe Biden after aides found classified documents at his private office and home. The Americast team explains what we know so far, why this spells trouble for the president, and the comparisons between this story and the discovery of hundreds of classified documents at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort. President Biden has also been tryin...

The House of Representatives tries (and so far fails) to elect a Speaker. The US House of Representatives has been in deadlock for days after the new Republican majority failed to elect their leading contender Kevin McCarthy as the new Speaker. Americast chats to one of the Republicans voting against him, Representative Ralph Norman, about why they think McCarthy isn’t the man for the job. And the...

The online discussion continues... Since Americast spoke to Dr Anthony Fauci, he has been the subject of Elon Musk tweets. And that’s not all Musk has been up to! The team speaks to a former member of Twitter’s now disbanded Trust and Safety Council about what Musk is doing to online safety. And, as basketball star Brittney Griner is exchanged for notorious arms dealer Viktor Bout, a former White...

Americast speaks to the doctor who has served seven US presidents about the US coronavirus response, clashes with Donald Trump and his family being targeted by trolls. And the team discusses the president's troubled, son Hunter Biden. Just what is on THAT laptop? Americast is presented by North America editor Sarah Smith, Today host Justin Webb, the BBC's Social Media and Disinformation Correspond...

As more states legalise marijuana, the team explore how America's relationship with the drug has changed. They interview a drug historian and a former adviser to Clinton, Bush Jnr and Obama on drug policy. Americast is presented by North America editor Sarah Smith, Today host Justin Webb, the BBC's Social Media and Disinformation Correspondent Marianna Spring, and North America correspondent Antho...

The blue tick, Silicon Valley sackings and Donald Trump. What impact is all this having on America? A former content moderator at the company, who was fired by Musk, helps us answer that question. And while many say Twitter is going off-the-rails, we talk through the US railroads. What’s working for them and what isn’t? Americast is presented by North America editor Sarah Smith, Today host Justin...

The former US President says he will "save" the US by once again running for the White House. One of his advisers, Jason Miller, takes us through his plans. Americast is presented by North America editor, Sarah Smith, Today host, Justin Webb, the BBC's Social Media and Disinformation Correspondent, Marianna Spring, and North America correspondent, Anthony Zurcher. Find out more about our "undercov...

As the midterm results continue to come in, the Americast team are back together in Washington DC taking a closer look at the rivalry between Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former President Donald Trump. And long-time Republican donor for the Trump campaign Dan K Eberhart tells the team why he thinks the party should move in a different direction following the midterms. Americast is presented b...

The Americast team are together in the studio in Washington DC for the first time as results in the midterms continue to come in. In their second episode of the night the team look at where the wins are for both the Republicans and the Democrats. They also explore where it leaves Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump as they look ahead to the elections in 2024. Americast is hosted by North America editor...

The Republicans look set to take control of the House of Representatives, but the battle for control of the Senate is on a knife-edge. Sarah, Anthony and Marianna get together in Washington to talk through what's been happening so far in the midterms and why it all matters. Americast is hosted by North America editor Sarah Smith, Today host Justin Webb, North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher...

President Biden says there is no place for "political violence in America". His warning follows an attack on Paul Pelosi, the husband of US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, last week. Within hours of that attack a series of unsubstantiated claims began circulating on social media contradicting official accounts of what had happened. Those misleading claims then went viral after being...

There are less than two weeks to go to the midterms. The Americast team look at why Republicans have seized upon the issue of crime and what the Democrats are trying to do to counter that. Professor of Criminology Charis Kubrin, talks the team through the perceived and real threat of crime in the US and the BBC’s Disinformation and Social Media Correspondent Marianna Spring, looks at how our ‘unde...

The Americast team look at the threat that election deniers could pose to democracy if they are elected to office in the upcoming US midterms. The team chat to Alabama Secretary of State and Republican John Merrill and the BBC’s Disinformation and Social Media correspondent Marianna Spring examines whether election deniers are reaching voters through their social media accounts. Americast is prese...

After claiming the 2012 shooting in Sandy Hook was a hoax, it’s a moment of reckoning for America’s conspiracy-theorist-in-chief Alex Jones as he is ordered to pay nearly $1bn in damages to the victim’s family members. Americast explores the huge cultural and social stories that define the increasingly polarised political debate. The team report on a changing country with on-the-ground insights fr...

The Americast team delve into how conspiracy theories evolve online and how misinformation is affecting US politics, with the help of our Undercover Voters and Barack Obama’s former deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes. US Special Correspondent Katty Kay is back from her trip on Route 66 meeting voters ahead of the midterms. President Joe Biden and Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis...

We’re racing towards the US midterms but don’t worry, the full Americast team is back together to get stuck into the key issues, characters and races, and which party might come out on top. With a little help from Cliff Young, pollster and President of US Public Affairs at Ipsos. And Marianna updates us on what our Undercover Voters are being targeted with. This episode is made by Phil Marzouk and...